Circus of Dreams
by lannistersdebt
Summary: "Ah, you want that one again?" Severus's voice was soft and quiet as ever, and for once, she couldn't hear a loud response from Draco. She took advantage of the pause to slip her heels off and inch down the hall toward Draco's room. "Alright then, Draco. The Night Circus."


Written for QLFC finals.  
Wigtown Wanderers  
Beater 1  
Prompt: The Night Circus, quote: "The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night."  
Additional Prompts: [character] Narcissa Malfoy, [scenario] reading/telling a bedtime story

Additional Notes: This is an addition to a previous fic I wrote, titled I Still Love You. It is not necessary to read that for any understanding of the events here, but to summarize that fic...Snape and Narcissa were in a relationship prior to her marriage with Lucius.

* * *

"_I still love you. But now I love him, too."_

Narcissa had known, from the moment Severus first held Draco, that there was nothing he wouldn't do for the boy...no, for either of them. She had worried for him and Lucius both at the Death Eater meetings, holding her son close as she waited late into the night for her husband to come home and give her news, and often, she had held her breath until she heard Severus' name. Lucius had told her about close calls and near misses, threats and missions, and everything in between. And when he told her the Potters were dead, her heart hurt.

She didn't hear from Severus for three days and then he showed up on the doorstep while Lucius was out, his face pale and tired, eyes red, and his voice hoarse. "I still love you. I love him, too." He'd paused and looked around until he spotted Draco, then looked back to her. "I had to make sure you were okay."

And then he disappeared again for a few days. She learned later that it was to clear up messes on his own end and to help Lucius as well; while her husband's money lining the Ministry was an almost certain guarantee of him remaining free, they could take no chances. Since then, Severus could be expected at the Manor quite often. Lucius often questioned why the wizard didn't mind watching Draco if they needed to go out and Narcissa usually just smiled slightly and shrugged.

She knew why but she could hardly tell him.

Tonight they'd gone out for a Ministry function and though it was late, Lucius had opted to stay a while longer. It was quiet when she got home, which usually meant that Draco was in bed and Severus could be found in one of two places—the library or the guest room they kept for him. She was betting on the former, or at least hoping for it, and started up the staircase. When she got to the top of the landing she paused. Was that...talking...she heard?

"Ah, you want that one again?" Severus's voice was soft and quiet as ever, and for once, she couldn't hear a loud response from Draco. She took advantage of the pause to slip her heels off and inch down the hall toward Draco's room. "Alright then, Draco. _The Night Circus_."

She inched a little closer.

"The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night."

He paused and Draco took full advantage of the opportunity to ask a question. "What's the Circle des Rev again?"

In the hall, Narcissa had to put her hand over her mouth to stifle a laugh.

"Le Cirque des Rêves. It means the Circus of Dreams." She could hear the amusement in Severus's voice too. "It wanders about London, but not on a schedule known to all, and is only open from sunset to sunrise. And everything in it is more wonderful than that of any other circus, for this one is not run by muggles...though they quite often attend. See, muggles think magic at circuses are just tricks, each with a neat explanation, and so it is safe for the magicians.

"The fans of the circus call themselves the dreamers, and they identify each other with a little bit of red somewhere on their clothing, the rest of which matches the black and white of the tents."

"Are you one of them?" Draco was already sounding drowsy.

"Ah, something like that."

"I bet Mum is too."

Narcissa's lips twitched and she made her way to the doorway, finally peeking inside before she leaned against the frame as Severus continued with the story, telling Draco all about the two masterful magicians running the circus and having a competition with each other. Their apprentices were the ones really doing all the magic though, from food to displays to demonstrations.

The two were on Draco's bed, the young boy snuggled up against Severus's side as he talked. It was clear this was a common occurrence when Severus watched him and she was almost surprised at how much the thought touched her. Lucius never told their son bedtime stories or read to him, leaving that for herself or the house elves if she wasn't inclined. And yet here was Severus…

The sheets rustled and then he was up and met her eyes before he turned to fix the duvet over Draco. She felt a stirring in her belly at the contact—affection, nerves, and attraction all at once.

Neither spoke until they were back in the hallway, though Narcissa was dying to. She wanted to tell him how much she appreciated him, how she liked the story he was telling, and more that she probably shouldn't say.

"How long were you standing there?" He leaned back against the wall to look at her, feeling oddly vulnerable.

"Just for most of the story about the circus." She looked down, then looked up as she inched closer to him. "It was wonderful."

"It's one of his favorites. Nothing entirely special." He shrugged and this his gaze dropped from her eyes to her lips. She was almost touching him, getting ever closer… "Cissa, what are you doing?"

"I don't entirely know." She raised up on her toes the slightest bit and then they were kissing, kissing as they had years ago before she was married and before Draco. His hands came up to tangle in her hair, as they had so many times before, and she found herself wishing she'd done this before now, but she hadn't wanted to betray her husband.

She'd just betrayed herself, instead, and all it took to show her what had been before her the whole time was a bedtime story.

Severus pulled away from her to look at her intently and ran his thumb across her cheek. "Narcissa…"

She pulled him down for another kiss and against his lips whispered what she'd heard him tell her so many times.

"I still love you."


End file.
